


Things Don't Stay Bad

by AnonymousSpacePrince



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Angst, Coming Out, Established Relationship, Fluff, Homophobia, Homophobic Language, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-24
Updated: 2017-02-24
Packaged: 2018-09-26 17:16:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,995
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9912872
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnonymousSpacePrince/pseuds/AnonymousSpacePrince
Summary: Growing up, Will heard every gay slur known to man come out of his father's mouth at one point or another. Every time, they sounded as bitter as black coffee spiked with rum. When he was young, he didn't understand what the words meant, or why his dad said them. He only knew that he was afraid of the look on his dad's face when he did.Home for the summer, with Derek, Will decides to come out to his homophobic family, because being disowned is better than hiding who he is.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This just... happened. I had the thought, and carried it out because I needed this to be a thing.

    Growing up, Will heard every gay slur known to man come out of his father's mouth at one point or another. Every time, they sounded as bitter as black coffee spiked with rum. When he was young, he didn't understand what the words meant, or why his dad said them. He only knew that he was afraid of the look on his dad's face when he did.  
  
    Will remembers the first time it clicked. He was in sixth grade, and at school, one of his friends had confessed to being gay. Will hadn't reacted much, other than saying he didn't really know what that meant. His friend said, "it means I like boys instead of girls."  
  
    Will had said, "oh, okay. I won't tell anyone." That had been that. Until that night over dinner, when Will had asked his mom, "is it normal for boys to like boys the way they're supposed to like girls?" He was curious, is all. He didn't expect the way his dad's lip would curl like a tendril of smoke from a house fire, or the way his brother's eyes narrowed like he'd been approached by a mountain lion.  
  
    His father didn't yell, or scream, or get up from the table. He just narrowed his eyes and said, "no, Billy, it's unnatural. It's a sin. Boys who like boys will rot in hell."  
  
    Will always looked up to his dad, as a kid. He believed every word his dad ever said to be true, until that moment. The way his stomach soured like old milk and his skin warmed from the inside out was a strange, new feeling. All he felt was frustration. He wanted to disagree. Will looked from his father to his mother, who was quietly biting the inside of her cheek and looking at her plate like she wanted it to burn. Then he looked to his brother, who was silently staring like he just wanted the scene to end.  
  
    Will just said, "oh," and went about eating his dinner. The tension around him had relaxed, but the tension inside him wound itself tight around his bones and made a permanent home there.  
  
  
    After that, he was aware of every hateful word his parents ever said. His mother never called people fags or queers like his dad did, but her eyes looked like carved stone whenever she said 'those people.' It always made Will angry. So angry, sometimes he had to walk away just so he was sure he wouldn't accidentally say something.  
  
    He didn't know why it made him so mad, until he got kissed by a boy for the first time. He was fourteen, and he was hanging out in Jordan Anderson's backyard. Jordan Anderson, the same friend that came out to him two years before. It wasn't a big, complex thing, or a shocking, life-defining moment. Or maybe it was, but it didn't feel like it at the time.  
  
    They were swinging on Jordan's porch swing, laughing about something that happened at school the day before. The swing had slowed to a stop, and Will's eyes had met Jordan's for a moment longer than they usually would. Jordan had leaned in, pressed a kiss to his lips the length of two hammering heartbeats, and then pulled back and looked down. "I'm sorry," Jordan had muttered.  
  
    "Hey, it's okay," Will had told him. "I didn't mind."  
  
    That night, alone in his bed, Will had thought about the kiss. About the way it made his heart beat. About how much he'd wanted to chase it. He'd kissed girls before, a couple times on dares, once for the hell of it, once because she'd kissed him first, and it'd never felt like that. Whenever he'd kissed girls, he'd never wanted to kiss them again afterwards.  
  
    Will thought hard about it, replayed the moment and the thoughts until a tape would've broken, and a single tear had fallen down his cheek because he could no longer deny why his dad's words hurt so much. Every time his dad called people fags, every time he said being gay was disgusting, it made Will angry because it felt so damn personal.  
  
  
    Now, Will was laying in his childhood bed, right where he had figured out he was gay, and he was wrapped up in his boyfriend's arms. The door was locked, so they were free to kiss and cuddle as much as they wanted in the middle of the day.  
  
    Will's parents hadn't suspected a thing when he'd brought Derek home for the summer. His mother'd encouraged him to bring whomever he wanted back with him if they didn't have anywhere else to be. His parents didn't suspect a thing, because Will had never been anything but straight in their eyes. It was too easy to just say, "yeah, Derek's parents won't be home for the summer, so I let him crash our party instead."  
  
    And Derek, being the effortless charmer he is, hadn't done much more than smile at them just right to win them over. It was easy. Everything was nice; it was going well. Which is why Will can't even believe himself when he says, "I wanna tell my parents about us."  
  
    "What, seriously?" Derek asks, pulling back enough to look at Will incredulously.  
  
    "Apparently," Will says. "I just... I don't like having to hide myself. I'm tired of it. It's so nice at school, because I can just hold your hand and kiss you whenever the fuck I want. But here? I dunno, I get you like this, sure, but I have to pretend you're just my hockey bro around my family. Even when we're not around anyone, I have to look over my shoulder in case a neighbour happens to be nearby. I can't linger, or hold your hand, or any of the shit I wanna do. Like, I'd rather my parents disown me for being myself than love me for being someone I'm not."  
  
    Derek kisses him, softly and sweetly. "If you wanna tell them, I support it."  
  
    "Yeah?"  
  
    "Yeah," Derek says. He looks a little worried, maybe, but not doubtful.  
  
    "Okay," Will says. "I'm gonna tell them."  
  
  
    And he does. The next morning at breakfast, Derek, Will, and his family are sitting around the dining room table. Everyone's eating bacon and eggs and hash browns and buttered toast. It's a proper homestyle meal, and it's delicious. Will wonders if his dad's eggs will taste like spiders once he hears what Will has to say.  
  
    He doesn't clear his throat, or stand up, or tell them he has an announcement. He just reaches for Derek's hand under the table as his heart starts pounding in his chest. His legs feel a little numb and he can feel his pulse racing and he says, "I'm gay."  
  
    No eggs turn to spiders, but his dad stops chewing. His mom stops chewing. His brother stops chewing. Will feels like his heart might stop beating. "You what?" His dad asks. Quiet. Monotone. Angry. Will remembers to breathe.  
  
    "I'm gay. I'm, yeah, gay, and Derek's my boyfriend." His voice doesn't shake. He forces it to stay steady. "I just wanted you all to know."  
  
    "Uh," his brother says. Nothing else. His dad is staring. He feels Derek's eyes on him, but he doesn't break the staring match.  
  
    "Will," his mother says. Nothing else. His dad blinks, looks away.  
  
    "Go," he says. His jaw is a hard-set line.  
  
    "What?"  
  
    "Go to your room," his dad clarifies. "Let me think."  
  
    Will gets up, keeps his grip on Derek's hand. Nobody says a word as Will leads Derek upstairs.  
  
    In his room, Will sits heavily on his bed. The frame creaks; the sheets rustle. His legs still feel like jelly. Will doesn't realise he's about to cry until there are tears running down his cheeks. Derek sits beside him, swipes his thumbs softly against Will's cheeks, and kisses each one gently. He pulls him in, hugs him tight. Derek doesn't let go, just keeps holding Will close.  
  
    "I thought I'd feel relieved, or- or something," Will says. His voice isn't shaking or pained. It's hollow. "But I just feel... empty. I think I fucked up, Derek. Like, really fucked up."  
  
    "Hey, it's okay. Whatever happens, you've got me," Derek assures him.  
  
    "Thank God for that," Will replies.  
  
    It's not more than a few minutes later that a knock sounds on Will's door. "Will, can I talk to you for a minute?" His dad asks from the other side of the door.  
  
    After a second, Will says, "door's open."  
  
    The knob turns, and the door pushes open. Will's dad, a tall, muscular man with short, dark hair and a chronic 5-o'clock shadow, steps into the room, looking small. "Derek, can I have a moment with my son, please?"  
  
    "Of course," Derek says. He squeezes Will's hand before he stands. He gives Will's dad a look on the way out that conveys wariness and protectiveness simultaneously. Once Derek is out of the room, Will's dad shuts the door gently, and Will stands. "Dad-" Will starts, all prepared, despite the numbness of his skin, to tell his dad that he doesn't care what he thinks and it's not gonna mean shit to him. His dad cuts him off.  
  
    "Will, I'm so sorry," he says.  
  
    Will feels like he's been struck by a car, or maybe lightning. "What?"  
  
    "I'm sorry, for all the stupid shit you had to hear from me growing up. I said so many hateful things; I never even thought about... you know, the fact that I could be hurting someone I love by saying those things. It was ignorant of me, and I'm sorry. Look, I-" he stops; starts again. "I was raised hearing that rhetoric from my parents, and I guess it just got passed onto me because nothing ever taught me differently.  
  
    "But now, now you've taught me differently. Son, I don't care who you're attracted to, as long as they make you happy. All that matters to me is that you're happy." Will has only ever seen his dad cry a handful of times, and it's almost scary to see tears welling up in his eyes now. "I'm sorry for all the homophobic shit I've said, and I want you to know that I'm proud of you for telling me, even though... I can imagine how you thought I'd react."  
  
    "I don't-" now, finally, Will's voice shakes like it's coming apart. Now he feels the relief. "I don't know what to say. Just-" He's crying. The tears are warm on his cheeks.  
  
    His dad pulls him into a tight hug, and they're both over six feet but they're crying and it's a little bit ridiculous, but Will can't remember the last time his dad actually hugged him so it's nice. When Will pulls back, his dad claps him on the shoulder. "You're happy, then?" He asks. "With Derek?"  
  
    "I am," Will says. "I really am."  
  
    "Do you love him?"  
  
    "More than anything."  
  
    Will's dad smiles. "Good. Then I say we go downstairs before he thinks I killed you or something."  
  
    Will laughs, loud and sudden. His dad chuckles too, and they go downstairs together. Derek immediately stands from the couch, where he'd been talking to Will's brother. Will watches Derek look him over, and he rolls his eyes and pulls Derek in for a chaste kiss.  
  
    After he pulls away and takes Derek's hand, Will's dad says, "as long as you continue to make my son happy, you're welcome here anytime, Derek."  
  
    Derek beams. "Thank you, sir. It's my main goal in life to make sure he's always happy."  
  
    "Oh my god, nerd," Will mutters, blushing.  
  
    Will's dad cracks a smile. "I'm very glad Will found someone who loves him as much as you seem to."  
  
    "I love him more than anything, sir," Derek says, a perfect reflection of Will's earlier words, and everyone in the room is smiling.


End file.
